Today, I went to Zumba class at the YMCA. One hour of Zumba makes me happy :) This week I increased from 4 running days/week to running 5 days. Wow, I will be running five days per week for the next 6 weeks or more. There is really no where else to fit another running day in besides my Zumba day on Wednesdays. So, after an hour of Zumba, I ran 3 miles on the treadmill. My friends are beginning to think I'm crazy! It was a nice easy run, at about an 11:30 pace. After all of that, I did 2 sets of the good morning, and 3 sets of back raises to strengthen my hamstrings.
Tuesday is usually the day I run the hills with Andrew, but he is still out trying to heal an injury. The hills are too dangerous to run by myself (no shoulder for most of the run), so I decided to do a track workout. I did a 1 mile warmup, 4x800 meters at a 5k pace with 400 meter recovery jogs, and a 1 mile cooldown, for a total of 5 miles. My Garmin's battery was dead, which I didn't discover till I stepped foot on the track, so I really don't know how fast I was running or how long it took me. I assume I was doing close to an 8:30 min/mile pace during the speed part. I was really movin and was about to die by the end of each interval. It felt really good, and I had lots of energy the whole rest of the evening, and all morning today! I do have to complain about all the people who walk on the track and hog the inside lane, knowing there are runners on the track as well. It's common courtesy to walk on the middle or outside lanes when there are runners on the track, but maybe people don't know this?!?
Next run: Thursday, 8 mile speedwork (1 mile intervals)
Total miles this week: 19
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Nutrition Facts for McDonalds
I have posted nutrition facts for McDonald's menu items that contain less than 500 calories and less than 20 grams of fat, with complete nutrition facts on my Food and Exercise Log blog. If interested, check it out. It may come in handy to print off!
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
New Food and Exercise Log Blog
Well, I decided that since a running blog has done such a great job at keeping me running, a food log blog would be a good idea to keep me calorie counting! I think all of us runners should keep some kind of food log, so we know what types of foods affect our running. Mine is more for purposes of controlling my eating.
Here is a link to my new food and exercise log. In it you will simply find a log of everything I put in my mouth, complete with the nutrition facts, as well as simply a line about what physical activity I did that day. If you are interested in what I eat while I'm training, then check it out! You may discover some different foods to try. If this works and I actually start losing weight, then maybe it will inspire you!
Here is a link to my new food and exercise log. In it you will simply find a log of everything I put in my mouth, complete with the nutrition facts, as well as simply a line about what physical activity I did that day. If you are interested in what I eat while I'm training, then check it out! You may discover some different foods to try. If this works and I actually start losing weight, then maybe it will inspire you!
Monday, July 20, 2009
Calorie counting blah!
Ok, so a while back I made a post about losing weight as one of my goals and I calculated the number of calories I needed to eat to lose 1 pound per week. I never actually started calorie counting because it seemed that I was doing fine with just "watching" what I was eating and running. Well, that's not working anymore, lol. It seems like I'm always finding a reason to eat a meal I'm not supposed to or snack when I'm not supposed to, and because I do run a lot I think this is ok. Obviously it's not ok or I would weigh a lot less than I do! I'm so tired of jumping on the scale and occasionally seeing 150. I never ever ever want to see that number again! I want to get far enough away from that stupid number that no matter what my hydration level is that day (or whatever other stupid contributing factors there are), the scale will not give me that number. If I sound hysterical right now, it's because I am!!
Now, a couple of years ago, I calorie counted for 3-4 months straight, at 1300 calories per day. Boy, did I see results! I was treadmill running and lifting weights on a regular basis during this time, so the results were great. I reached 144 pounds, which is the lowest I've ever weighed, and I trimmed a lot of inches off. I feel like the only way for me to reach my goal is to resume this dreaded calorie counting again. Obviously, 1300 calories is crazy, especially for as much running as I'm doing. I'm going to shoot for 1600-1700 calories daily for this week and see what kind of results I get. Yesterday, I ate 1800 because I ran 11 miles and I felt like I needed to eat more. I'm going to play it by ear and see where this lands me.
Let the calorie counting begin!
Now, a couple of years ago, I calorie counted for 3-4 months straight, at 1300 calories per day. Boy, did I see results! I was treadmill running and lifting weights on a regular basis during this time, so the results were great. I reached 144 pounds, which is the lowest I've ever weighed, and I trimmed a lot of inches off. I feel like the only way for me to reach my goal is to resume this dreaded calorie counting again. Obviously, 1300 calories is crazy, especially for as much running as I'm doing. I'm going to shoot for 1600-1700 calories daily for this week and see what kind of results I get. Yesterday, I ate 1800 because I ran 11 miles and I felt like I needed to eat more. I'm going to play it by ear and see where this lands me.
Let the calorie counting begin!
Long Run #8 - 11 miles!!
Yesterday was the longest run I have ever done in my life! I am at a point in my training where I will be having these types of workouts. Until a couple of weeks ago, all the distances were familiar to me in past training, but now I'm venturing into new territory where I will be pushing myself farther than I have ever before. It's very exciting! I felt that way during my tempo run the other day. It seems like each run now is a test of my ability, and so far I have been up to the tasks.
So, I made some changes from last Sunday's 10 mile long run. Last Sunday, I ate half of a Power Bar during the run and ended up with horrible side stitches. Before yesterday's run, I went to Dick's Sporting Goods and purchased Gu Energy Gel. Some runners on dailymile recommended it to me. The only flavor they had was tri-berry, so that's what I bought. I was also armed with three 6 ounce bottles of regular Gatorade. I have heard people complain that they can't take the energy gel and drink regular gatorade because it's too much electrolyte for them and they end up with a tummy ache. I am a super salty sweater, so I figured I would be ok. It didn't bother my stomach one bit.
The temperature was perfect - well almost perfect. When the sun wasn't shining, it felt great out, about 70-73 degrees. The sun wasn't shining for about half of the run, but the half that it was shining was difficult, especially because it was the last half of the run and I was getting tired. My pace started off around 11:50 min/mile and by the end had slowed to about 12:20 min/mile. I slowed down according to my heart rate, which I tried to keep under 150bpm. Apparently the heat was getting to me, so I slowed down. I think that my knees and shins are a limiting factor in my running. They start aching after I run long distances, I would say longer than 8 miles. There is a dull aching to them, not bad enough to stop running, but noticeable. When I have to stop for traffic while crossing a street, I can really feel my shins aching, then it subsides a little when I continue to run. Once I'm finished running, they ache for a little afterwards, but by the time I'm back at home they are fine, and they don't hurt the next day. I'm not sure if this is normal or not. I need to do some research on this. One thing I have noticed is that they used to ache during a 5 mile run and now they don't. I think that they just need to get used to the mileage.
Here are my splits and heart rates, as you can see at mile 8 the heat started wearing me down!
1 11:51@145bpm, 2 11:48@147bpm, 3 12:00@148bpm, 4 11:57@148bpm, 5 12:04@148bpm, 6 12:03@149bpm, 7 12:02@150bpm, 8 12:14@148bpm, 9 12:27@150bpm, 10 12:34@153bpm, 11 12:20@154bpm.
Total miles: 11
Time: 2:13:22
Ave pace: 12:08 min/mile
Ave HR: 149
Calories burned: 1233
Next run: Tuesday, hill run or speed workout
Total miles this week: 11
So, I made some changes from last Sunday's 10 mile long run. Last Sunday, I ate half of a Power Bar during the run and ended up with horrible side stitches. Before yesterday's run, I went to Dick's Sporting Goods and purchased Gu Energy Gel. Some runners on dailymile recommended it to me. The only flavor they had was tri-berry, so that's what I bought. I was also armed with three 6 ounce bottles of regular Gatorade. I have heard people complain that they can't take the energy gel and drink regular gatorade because it's too much electrolyte for them and they end up with a tummy ache. I am a super salty sweater, so I figured I would be ok. It didn't bother my stomach one bit.
The temperature was perfect - well almost perfect. When the sun wasn't shining, it felt great out, about 70-73 degrees. The sun wasn't shining for about half of the run, but the half that it was shining was difficult, especially because it was the last half of the run and I was getting tired. My pace started off around 11:50 min/mile and by the end had slowed to about 12:20 min/mile. I slowed down according to my heart rate, which I tried to keep under 150bpm. Apparently the heat was getting to me, so I slowed down. I think that my knees and shins are a limiting factor in my running. They start aching after I run long distances, I would say longer than 8 miles. There is a dull aching to them, not bad enough to stop running, but noticeable. When I have to stop for traffic while crossing a street, I can really feel my shins aching, then it subsides a little when I continue to run. Once I'm finished running, they ache for a little afterwards, but by the time I'm back at home they are fine, and they don't hurt the next day. I'm not sure if this is normal or not. I need to do some research on this. One thing I have noticed is that they used to ache during a 5 mile run and now they don't. I think that they just need to get used to the mileage.
Here are my splits and heart rates, as you can see at mile 8 the heat started wearing me down!
1 11:51@145bpm, 2 11:48@147bpm, 3 12:00@148bpm, 4 11:57@148bpm, 5 12:04@148bpm, 6 12:03@149bpm, 7 12:02@150bpm, 8 12:14@148bpm, 9 12:27@150bpm, 10 12:34@153bpm, 11 12:20@154bpm.
Total miles: 11
Time: 2:13:22
Ave pace: 12:08 min/mile
Ave HR: 149
Calories burned: 1233
Next run: Tuesday, hill run or speed workout
Total miles this week: 11
Friday, July 17, 2009
Hill run, Zumba, tempo run
I so need to stop slacking on posting my workouts. I feel like the last two weeks have gone by so fast! I do a workout, delay posting it, then before I know it, 3-4 days have passed and I haven't posted anything!
Monday was supposed to be a compete rest day, but for some reason I felt like walking, so I called up my friend Keely. She was up for a walk, so we walked 3 miles around Saint Albans. After that, I decided to start this hundred pushup program. I've been seeing a lot of people on dailymile doing this and thought I would give it a try. Let me just tell you, this program is no joke! First, you do a test to see how many pushups you can do in a row in good form. I was able to do 15. It takes this number and decides where to start you based on your level of fitness. So, for the first workout, it had me do 45 pushups, divided into 5 sets, broken down as 12, 10, 7, 7, and 9. I was struggling at the end, but completed it. But, the next TWO days, I was so sore I could barely move. This is a good thing, but nonetheless I was very surprised. My obliques were even hurting! I forgot how great pushups are for your core. I was supposed to do 2 more workouts this week, but I didn't. I have been falling asleep early this week and have been busy. I am going to start over on Sunday.
Tuesday was my hill run with Andrew again. This time was a bit tougher because I ran up 119 way too fast. I think I ran it at like a 10:30 pace, not intentionally. Whenever I run with Andrew, I push myself harder for some reason. I guess this is a benefit from running with others. He is a much faster runner than I am, and although he keeps whatever pace I'm running, I feel compelled to run faster so I'm not soooo slow, lol. Anyways, I booked it up the first hill and felt pretty drained for a couple of miles after that. I started feeling better, though and finished strong. Andrew was nursing a pulled muscle and was unable to run fast down the last portion of the hills, so he actually slowed me down this time! We ended up finishing the hills in the same time as last time, as the fast uphill was balanced out by the not so fast downhill.
Wednesday was Zumba for an hour and then some core training. I also decided to work on my hamstrings. I got this popular iPhone/iPod Touch application called iFitness. This application is worth paying for. It gives you so many different workouts, with illustrated pictures and instructions on how to do them. All I had to do was select the hamstring muscle group, and it listed a bunch of strength training exercises that work the hamstrings. I ended up doing the back raise, the lunging step up, and the good morning. I had never done the good morning before, and never would've thought it would do much, but I have been sore for 2 days after doing these workouts. I'm going to try to do these twice a week.
Thursday was an off day, as it was Eric's birthday and we had baked spaghetti and cake w/ice cream. I woke up this morning ready to burn off the birthday meal with a 7 mile tempo run. The plan was to do 1 mile warmup, 5 miles at a 9:45 min/mile pace, and a 1 mile cooldown. This was probably the first training run in a while to really test me and show me where I am physically. Aside from the improvment in my 5k time by a whole minute, this tempo run was either going to make me or break me. I had never maintained a pace like that for that long before. I ended up doing great. That pace was comfortably hard, but I knew I could run harder if I needed to. I really surprised myself today. I have been so happy lately because I have truly seen improvment in my times, endurance, and stamina. All the hard training is FINALLY paying off. For a while I wasn't able to see much improvment, but lately I've been seeing lots. I couldn't find my HR monitor this morning before leaving to run, so I have no idea what my HR was. I was so mad about that! Of course, I found the stupid thing the minute I came back home after my run. My right knee started bugging me at about mile 4, just a slight discomfort behind the knee. After the run, it really bothered me for hours. It would hurt just sitting there, and if I turned it or twisted it, it was uncomfortable. Finally early in the evening, it quit bothering me. I'm supposed to run about 4 miles tomorrow, then 11 on Sunday. Hopefully, it won't give me anymore trouble.
Splits for the tempo run:
Mile 1: 11:20
Mile 2: 9:44
Mile 3: 9:27
Mile 4: 9:38
Mile 5: 9:47
Mile 6: 9:35
Mile 7: 10:56
Next run: tomorrow, 4 easy slow miles
Total miles this week: 22
Monday was supposed to be a compete rest day, but for some reason I felt like walking, so I called up my friend Keely. She was up for a walk, so we walked 3 miles around Saint Albans. After that, I decided to start this hundred pushup program. I've been seeing a lot of people on dailymile doing this and thought I would give it a try. Let me just tell you, this program is no joke! First, you do a test to see how many pushups you can do in a row in good form. I was able to do 15. It takes this number and decides where to start you based on your level of fitness. So, for the first workout, it had me do 45 pushups, divided into 5 sets, broken down as 12, 10, 7, 7, and 9. I was struggling at the end, but completed it. But, the next TWO days, I was so sore I could barely move. This is a good thing, but nonetheless I was very surprised. My obliques were even hurting! I forgot how great pushups are for your core. I was supposed to do 2 more workouts this week, but I didn't. I have been falling asleep early this week and have been busy. I am going to start over on Sunday.
Tuesday was my hill run with Andrew again. This time was a bit tougher because I ran up 119 way too fast. I think I ran it at like a 10:30 pace, not intentionally. Whenever I run with Andrew, I push myself harder for some reason. I guess this is a benefit from running with others. He is a much faster runner than I am, and although he keeps whatever pace I'm running, I feel compelled to run faster so I'm not soooo slow, lol. Anyways, I booked it up the first hill and felt pretty drained for a couple of miles after that. I started feeling better, though and finished strong. Andrew was nursing a pulled muscle and was unable to run fast down the last portion of the hills, so he actually slowed me down this time! We ended up finishing the hills in the same time as last time, as the fast uphill was balanced out by the not so fast downhill.
Wednesday was Zumba for an hour and then some core training. I also decided to work on my hamstrings. I got this popular iPhone/iPod Touch application called iFitness. This application is worth paying for. It gives you so many different workouts, with illustrated pictures and instructions on how to do them. All I had to do was select the hamstring muscle group, and it listed a bunch of strength training exercises that work the hamstrings. I ended up doing the back raise, the lunging step up, and the good morning. I had never done the good morning before, and never would've thought it would do much, but I have been sore for 2 days after doing these workouts. I'm going to try to do these twice a week.
Thursday was an off day, as it was Eric's birthday and we had baked spaghetti and cake w/ice cream. I woke up this morning ready to burn off the birthday meal with a 7 mile tempo run. The plan was to do 1 mile warmup, 5 miles at a 9:45 min/mile pace, and a 1 mile cooldown. This was probably the first training run in a while to really test me and show me where I am physically. Aside from the improvment in my 5k time by a whole minute, this tempo run was either going to make me or break me. I had never maintained a pace like that for that long before. I ended up doing great. That pace was comfortably hard, but I knew I could run harder if I needed to. I really surprised myself today. I have been so happy lately because I have truly seen improvment in my times, endurance, and stamina. All the hard training is FINALLY paying off. For a while I wasn't able to see much improvment, but lately I've been seeing lots. I couldn't find my HR monitor this morning before leaving to run, so I have no idea what my HR was. I was so mad about that! Of course, I found the stupid thing the minute I came back home after my run. My right knee started bugging me at about mile 4, just a slight discomfort behind the knee. After the run, it really bothered me for hours. It would hurt just sitting there, and if I turned it or twisted it, it was uncomfortable. Finally early in the evening, it quit bothering me. I'm supposed to run about 4 miles tomorrow, then 11 on Sunday. Hopefully, it won't give me anymore trouble.
Splits for the tempo run:
Mile 1: 11:20
Mile 2: 9:44
Mile 3: 9:27
Mile 4: 9:38
Mile 5: 9:47
Mile 6: 9:35
Mile 7: 10:56
Next run: tomorrow, 4 easy slow miles
Total miles this week: 22
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Seven Traits Award
I have been blogging for a couple of months now, but am still pretty new to all of this. Kristin passed on the Seven Traits Award to me. This is where I share seven things about myself and then pass it on to seven other blogs that I enjoy reading. Well, here I go.
1. I love makeup. Actually am obsessed with makeup and spend a lot of money on higher end brands like MAC. I watch a lot of youtube videos on makeup tutorials and have gotten pretty darn good. In fact, I did my friend's makeup for her wedding!
2. I am a pharmacist at Wal-Mart and I provide diabetes education counseling. My goal is to become a certified diabetes educator.
3. I love animals. I have a cat named Bizzle Cat, 2 cockatiels named Baby Bird and Sweety Pie, and a hamster named Ham Chop. I'm trying to get a dog, but my cat will not have any of that.
4. I enjoy cooking, but between working and getting my runs in I usually don't have time to do it. I can actually cook really good. My poor husband wishes I would cook more.
5. I'm into cars. I have a red 2008 Nissan Altima Coupe. It's a 6-speed manual transmission (yes, I drive a stick) with a cat-back exhaust and an aftermarket grille. My husband has a drag car, so it's something we both enjoy.
6. I have a shopping problem. If there was a local chapter of shoppers anonymous, my husband would probably make me go. Along with the makeup, I buy lots of clothes and jewelry. I have way too many clothes, in fact I have turned our spare bedroom into a walk-in closet. Due to my blessed wide feet, I don't have a shoe obsession because I can't wear most brands.
7. I hate to clean. It's just something I despise having to do on my days off. If you come to my house, it's generally not cluttered, but you will find the dishes sitting in the sink.
So, I will pass this Seven Traits Award onto the following bloggers:
BarbieRuns
B.O.B.
Tyly
Miles with Mickey
RunnerDude
Never Quit Never Stop
26.2 Quest
This was fun, I enjoyed it!
1. I love makeup. Actually am obsessed with makeup and spend a lot of money on higher end brands like MAC. I watch a lot of youtube videos on makeup tutorials and have gotten pretty darn good. In fact, I did my friend's makeup for her wedding!
2. I am a pharmacist at Wal-Mart and I provide diabetes education counseling. My goal is to become a certified diabetes educator.
3. I love animals. I have a cat named Bizzle Cat, 2 cockatiels named Baby Bird and Sweety Pie, and a hamster named Ham Chop. I'm trying to get a dog, but my cat will not have any of that.
4. I enjoy cooking, but between working and getting my runs in I usually don't have time to do it. I can actually cook really good. My poor husband wishes I would cook more.
5. I'm into cars. I have a red 2008 Nissan Altima Coupe. It's a 6-speed manual transmission (yes, I drive a stick) with a cat-back exhaust and an aftermarket grille. My husband has a drag car, so it's something we both enjoy.
6. I have a shopping problem. If there was a local chapter of shoppers anonymous, my husband would probably make me go. Along with the makeup, I buy lots of clothes and jewelry. I have way too many clothes, in fact I have turned our spare bedroom into a walk-in closet. Due to my blessed wide feet, I don't have a shoe obsession because I can't wear most brands.
7. I hate to clean. It's just something I despise having to do on my days off. If you come to my house, it's generally not cluttered, but you will find the dishes sitting in the sink.
So, I will pass this Seven Traits Award onto the following bloggers:
BarbieRuns
B.O.B.
Tyly
Miles with Mickey
RunnerDude
Never Quit Never Stop
26.2 Quest
This was fun, I enjoyed it!
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